Thought for 1st Sunday of Advent

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be watchful! Be alert!
You do not know when the time will come.
It is like a man traveling abroad.
He leaves home and places his servants in charge,
each with his own work,
and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.
Watch, therefore;
you do not know when the Lord of the house is coming,
whether in the evening, or at midnight,
or at cockcrow, or in the morning.
May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping.
What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’”

I remember when I was young my parents would go out on their date night. I’m the youngest of three boys, and when my oldest brother was old enough to babysit, he was left in charge. When they left it was often my job to be on the lookout for their return. We never did anything horrible while they were gone, but we often made a mess of the house. We could usually predict the time when they’d come home. I’d watch out the window and announce to my brothers when I saw their car coming. We usually would have the house back in order and act like we were sleeping by the time they entered the house. But we were caught a few times by surprise by their early return.

This is similar to our Christian journey. We sometimes go about our lives thinking that we have plenty of time to turn our lives around. We consider ourselves invincible and take risks with our lives, sometimes placing our souls in jeopardy. We think that the Lord will not come for us soon. And yet, we “do not know when the Lord of the house is coming, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning.”

Advent is a time of waiting for the coming of the Lord. And yet it is not passive; it is an active waiting. There should be an urgency about our lives. We are called to be vigilant daily for the Lord’s return.

Am I actively waiting for the Lord’s return?

What am I going to change this Advent season to be ready for the Lord?